This is the blog for the University of Tennessee Gulu Study and Service Abroad Program, officially launched in 2011. This program - located in Northern Uganda - offers students the opportunity to engage in international service learning. It combines academics with internships in order to facilitate learning while allowing students to work with individuals and groups who are promoting peace and development in this war-affected region.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

COCA~COLA

“I Love You Africa”

Coca
Cola has released a new viral advertisement. It has a catchy song for a popular
product, but it sends some disturbing messages.

There a billion reasons to believe in
Africa.

Yes,
there are a billion reasons to believe in Africa, but I am not sure that Coca
Cola is aware of them.

While the world shakes and stumbles…
Africa dances to a different beat.

The
last time I checked the Arab Spring that shook the Arab world began in North
Africa. Egypt, Libya, Tunisia are firmly attached to the African continent.

For every bank closed down… 2 million
Africans send money back home.

This
may not be common knowledge, but there are 54 recognized countries in Africa.
The continent has over 1 billon people. According to the CIA World Fact Book
there are over 34 million people in Uganda alone. Banks may shut down every
day, but fear not, there are 2 million Africans sending remittances home to
keep the continent afloat…

As
authorities try to tame the internet… Africa becomes the most mobile-connected
place on the planet.

True.
The Arab Spring spread like wildfire thanks to improving communication
technologies. YouTube made “Kony famous,” the radio helped bring soldiers home
from the bush in Northern Uganda. There are internet cafes in Gulu Town. Coca
Cola’s viral advertisement plays multiples times every hour on the TV at our
hotel. Boda boda men text while driving and there is a lucrative market for
buying air time.

While the rest of the world struggles to
get back… 1,000 new businesses are opened in Africa every day.

Gulu
recently acquired its Wal-Mart equivalent: Uchumi. At Uchumi it costs 4,000
shillings (approximately $2 USD) to get two packs of very stale, off-brand gum,
28,000 shillings for a bag of almonds and 22,000 for a bag of cereal. For less
than 4,000 shillings one can enjoy a more nutritious, traditional meal at a
local restaurant with foods you will never see on the shelves at Uchumi. Although
some foreign investors are welcomed sources of employment, unchecked neoliberal
capitalism has had a destabilizing effect, handicapping the local economy by
increasing inflation and out-competing local businesses. Where the rubber meets
the road is in a competitive advantage garnished through the nation’s forced
adoption of economic policies that grossly undercuts governmental protection of
local industries. So yes, businesses are opening; but most are stocked with
foreign goods and have a predominantly foreign and/or upper class clientele.

While the world turns grey… we live life
in full color.

Consult
Uganda’s colorful Anti-Homosexuality debate…

While the world worries about the
future… 1 Billion Africans are sharing a Coke.

Rephrase:
While the rest of the world worries about clogging arteries and rotting teeth, many
Africans struggle to afford a Coke.

The
commercial is suggesting that while the rest of the world is concerned about
tomorrow, Africans are not worried about acquiring potable water; they are not
worried about affording school fees, combating HIV/AIDs, institutionalized
corruption, inequalities or rising inflation. No, according to this
advertisement they are all drinking a Coke. What Africans need is an overhaul
of the predatory political economy of a global “free-market” system puppeteered
by a ‘corporatocracy’ which profits from impoverishing the “developing world,”
starting with Coke.